Entrepreneur pitches mountain-bike and hiking trails on city-owned land in public comment

Devin Harris, a remodeling and landscaping business owner from Lexington, Missouri, used the public-comment period on Feb. 3 to outline plans to build mountain-bike and hiking trails and to stage events such as Spartan and Tough Mudder races. Harris said he is pursuing partnerships with nearby towns and is seeking permission to use an approximately 18-acre city-owned parcel near North Gulf Hills Drive and Old Time Drive in Excelsior Springs.

Harris said Lexington has given verbal support for the project and he is seeking written commitments from multiple towns before purchasing insurance. He told the council he cannot complete his bid until he secures additional insurance and that one insurer quoted an increase of “over $8,000 a year.” Harris said the city-owned hillside he identified has a power-line right-of-way that could serve as a return or walking trail and an existing paved road at the bottom that he believes would allow access and egress.

Harris described a long-term vision of linking trails within a 30-mile radius of multiple towns and bringing outdoor recreation events to communities. He asked for help getting local municipalities on board and said he was still deciding whether to organize the work as a nonprofit, volunteer effort or a for-profit business.

The council did not take action on Harris’s proposal during the meeting. The presentation was part of the public-comment period; Harris requested that the city consider the site and acknowledged that he is still securing insurance and formal commitments from other communities.